Russia, US astronauts safe as rocket failure forces emergency landing

A booster rocket made an emergency landing on Thursday after it failed mid-air on Thursday. The rocket was carrying a Soyuz spacecraft and with US and Russian astronauts, Nick Haque and Alexei Ovchinin, on board and was heading for the International Space Station.

Both Hague and Ovchinin’s arms and legs flailed after the failure occurred with two men being shaken.

The booster rocket was launched from the Soviet-era cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, and according to reports, the initial launch had gone smoothly with failure occurring at higher altitude.

However, the crew have made a safe emergency landing and were in radio contact as the rescuers prepped themselves to pick the crew up.

NASA’s full statement on the incident:

"The Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station at 4:40 a.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 11 (2:40 p.m. in Baikonur) carrying American astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin. Shortly after launch, there was an anomaly with the booster and the launch ascent was aborted, resulting in a ballistic landing of the spacecraft.

Astronaut Nick Hague of @NASA (left) is welcomed by NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine after landing safely in Kazakhstan following the failure of Soyuz rocket booster. https://t.co/tRYU6iFG7Q pic.twitter.com/0lqUb5RKo7

— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) October 11, 2018

.@AstroHague, right, and cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin, left, embrace their families after landing in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Hague and Ovchinin arrived after a safe landing on Earth following a Soyuz booster failure during launch earlier. Look: https://t.co/MzoA9TOqXk pic.twitter.com/mZqIiL7RYi

— NASA (@NASA) October 11, 2018

"Search and rescue teams were deployed to the landing site. Hague and Ovchinin are out of the capsule and are reported to be in good condition. They will be transported to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia outside of Moscow.

"NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and the NASA team are monitoring the situation carefully. NASA is working closely with Roscosmos to ensure the safe return of the crew. Safety of the crew is the utmost priority for NASA. A thorough investigation into the cause of the incident will be conducted."